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Some target species include: Pel’s Fishing Owl, Plain-backed Sunbird, Pink-throated Twinspot, African Broadbill, Eastern Nicator, Narina Trogon, Southern Banded Snake-Eagle, Crested Guineafowl, Blue Crane and Wattled Crane, the endangered Blue Swallow, Spotted Ground Thrush, Orange Ground Thrush, Ground Woodpecker, Bearded Vulture, Drakensberg Rockjumper, Southern Bald Ibis, Gurney’s Sugarbird, and Cape Parrot.
The Mkuze area is renowned as a bird lovers’ mecca. The junction of the moderate and tropical climate zones creates a habitat suitable for an extraordinary variety of plants and animals.
Localised birds include Pink-throated Twinspot, Eastern Nicator, Pel’s Fishing Owl, African Broadbill and Neergaard’s Sunbird.
St Lucia is a popular tourist town and with over 420 species recorded in the area, some of Zululand’s best birdwatching opportunities can be found here. It’s also one of South Africa’s most biodiverse regions. While birding on foot trails, you’ll see waterbuck and reedbuck grazing and hear hippos snorting from the pans, making for a special birding experience.
The surrounding World Heritage Site of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, combined with Lake St Lucia, covers an area of about 38 000ha. This is one of South Africa’s most important waterbird breeding sites.
The habitats vary significantly from the estuary and its floodplains and pans to dune forest, sand forest, coastal thickets, mangroves and grassland (with flooded areas in summer).
Ndumo and Tembe are world-renowned birding destinations set in the northeastern corner of Zululand called Maputaland. The region is flanked by the Lebombo Mountains in the west, the Indian Ocean in the east and the Mozambique border in the north.
This predominantly flat region is drained by two major rivers: the Pongola and the Mkuze. The Pongola floodplain runs from Jozini to its confluence with the Usutu River and is dominated by pans, lala palm savanna and bush clumps. Strips of riverine forest can be found along some pans and streams. Coastal dune forest lines the Indian Ocean, and the coastline is also dotted with numerous pans and lakes.
This region provides a habitat for many species not found anywhere else in South Africa. Tropical stragglers, both marine and inland, are found every year, including specials such as Crab Plover, Sooty Tern, Rosy-throated Longclaw, Broad-billed Roller and Livingstone’s Turaco.
In Ndumo and Tembe, you can spot the shy sand-forest specials, such as Pink-throated Twinspot, African Broadbill, Green Malkoha (Chattering Yellowbill), Neergaard’s Sunbird and Rudd’s Apalis. Tembe is one of the few places in South Africa where Plain-backed Sunbird, Lemon-breasted Canary, African Broadbill and Woodward’s Batis are seen regularly. Waterbirds such as African Pygmy Goose, Rufous-bellied Heron and Lesser Jacana abound in the floodplain pans.
Situated off the beaten track, Kosi Bay has much to offer the birder. Mangroves, lala palm savanna, coastal dune forest and wetlands are the major habitats here, and birds such as Pel’s Fishing Owl, Lemon-breasted Canary, Rosy-throated Longclaw, Palm-nut Vulture and Black-throated Wattle-eye are among the residents.
This birding route starts in the Ukhahlamba Drakensberg World Heritage Site, travels down from the sandstone cliffs, basalt precipices and buttresses, through the foothills of the Drakensberg to the picturesque rolling hills of the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands.
In just one outing, you can expect to see Wattled, Grey-crowned and Blue cranes.
Other key attractions include some of the most reliable sites for Cape Parrot, Cape Vulture, Blue Swallow, Bush Blackcap, Ground Woodpecker, Barratt’s Warbler, Orange Ground Trush and Forest Buzzard.
Travelling along the breathtaking Sani Pass offers the unique opportunity of viewing birds in a rugged environment that comprises 5 different habitats, ranging in height from 1 600m to 3 200m. The heart of this route lies in the lowlands below the Sani Pass, which includes picturesque nature reserves and large tracts of pristine mist-belt forest and grassland.
This region hosts various highly sought-after endemic species, such as Drakensberg Siskin, Drakensberg Rockjumper, Gurney’s Sugarbird and Cape Vulture. It is also home to the Bearded Vulture and Red-necked Falcon.
This tour, part of the Zululand Birding Route, showcases the birding hotspots of Hluhluwe-Imfolozi and St Lucia, and traverses a variety of habitats.
The Hluhluwe-iMfolozi region, with the park of the same name as its centrepiece, is recognised for its rich biodiversity and is among the most abundant birding areas in Southern Africa. Over 340 bird species can be found here, including several endemics and specials, as well as many raptors, from large eagles to vultures and accipiters to owls.
This region provides a habitat for many species not found anywhere else in South Africa. Tropical stragglers, both marine and inland, are found every year, including specials such as Crab Plover, Sooty Tern, Rosy-throated Longclaw, Broad-billed Roller and Livingstone’s Turaco.
St Lucia is a popular tourist town, and with over 420 species recorded in the area, some of Zululand’s best birdwatching opportunities can be found here. It is also one of South Africa’s most biodiverse regions. While birding on foot trails, you’ll see waterbuck and reedbuck grazing and hear hippos snorting from the pans, making for a special birding experience.
The surrounding World Heritage Site of the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, combined with Lake St Lucia, covers an area of about 38 000ha. This is one of South Africa’s most important waterbird breeding sites.
The habitats vary significantly from the estuary and its floodplains and pans to dune forest, sand forest, coastal thickets, mangroves and grassland (with flooded areas in summer).